Roanoke Canal Trail
A nature walking trail has been developed along the tow path of the 1820’s Roanoke Canal that allows visitors to explore some of the most impressive and best preserved early nineteenth century canal construction in the nation.
Below is the web address of the Canal Trail's site on the Halifax County Tourism site
http://www.visithalifax.com/roanokecanal.php
Canal History
Begun in 1819 and completed in 1823, the Roanoke Canal was built as the North Carolina segment of the ambitious Roanoke Navigation System, designed to connect the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia with Norfolk over a distance of 400 miles.
For the builders of the canal, Great Falls, an area of the Roanoke River known by the Indians as "the river of death" because of the rapid, tumbling waters, presented the biggest obstacle. In a distance of about nine miles, the river dropped about 85 feet. This was overcome by the construction of the canal that was forged from a terrain of deep cuts, high embankments, culverts and bedrock that had to be blasted.
When the canal was completed, it provided an economic boost for the area and the farmers of the interior. When the canal company never realized a great financial success, due in part to major repairs caused by frequent flooding and the arrival of the railroad, the channel of water was sold to the Roanoke Navigation and Water Power Company. This company deepened and widened the canal for use as a source of water power generated through the power plant located behind the grist mill at Weldon's River Falls Park.
Canal Access Locations
There are five access locations to the canal trail allowing for enjoyment in short lengths.
Roanoke Rapids Dam Access Point...is located off of 5th Street at the end of Oakwood Avenue in Roanoke Rapids. It is 1.4 miles to the next access location.
The original first 2 miles of the canal is now under Roanoke Rapids Lake that was formed when the dam was built in the 1950’s. Along this section of the trail you will see a surge culvert and the Bulkhead.
Canal Locks Building Access Point...The building that once was server as a power plant and is the planned site for the Roanoke Canal Museum current being developed. It is located below First Street, off of Roanoke Avenue at Jackson Street Ext. It is 1.8 miles to the next access location.
A portion of the locks used to raise and lower bateaux can be seen here and the trail will meander along the edge of Roanoke Rapids’ first residential area that was known as "Old Town" and was created as a mill village for the cotton mill that was located on the banks of the river.
River Road Access Point...is located off of Park Avenue on River Road. It is 3.6 miles to the next access location. This is the longest portion of the trail.
Roanoke Canal and Aqueduct Access Point... is off of Hwy 158, one mile from I-95. Turn at the Campground. There is a highway marker indicating where to turn. It is .08 miles to the final access location.
The A. Edwin Akers Aqueduct Park is about 100 yards from the parking lot and through the wooden gate. There are some picnic tables here to enjoy an afternoon break. The aqueduct that spans 30 feet with a single arch was built of local granite and is one of the area’s most impressive engineering accomplishments. From the observation area, there is a very attractive view of the cascading waters over the granite rocks of Chockoyotte Creek.
Weldon’s River Falls Park Access Point... is located at the intersection of Hwy 158 E and Hwy 301 in Weldon. This is the location of the end of the canal.
Located in Weldon was the basin of the canal. It was necessary for the goods to be unloaded from the bateaux and transferred over land to steam boats that would dock at Weldon’s Landing, a distance of about 300 yards. A set of locks were built to allow bateaux to re-enter the river below the falls, but were washed away by flooding shortly after being built.
It was because of the canal and the goods it brought from the west that attracted the railroad companies from the east. Thus far, Norfolk was the sole destination of the goods via a water route. Therefore rail companies from Petersburg and Portsmouth, Virginia and Raleigh and Wilmington, North Carolina built rail lines to or near Weldon to obtain the valuable goods that flowed the waters of the Roanoke Canal, then to transport them around the region and throughout the nation.